Repsol Honda Team aim for more after up and down Friday in Australia

Making the most of limited track time, Joan Mir and Luca Marini returned to MotoGP action at Phillip Island as weather, and geese, played their part in a wild first day.

Dramatic weather and Phillip Island once again went hand-in-hand as the opening of the 2024 Australian Grand Prix was plagued with rain on Friday morning. A lengthy delay ultimately led to the cancellation of Free Practice 1 in Australia. As a result, it would just be a single 60-minute session of practice in the afternoon which fortunately stayed dry despite clouds quickly mustering overhead.

Joan Mir returned to one of his favourite circuits on the calendar but had several challenges to overcome in Friday’s single session. With a new surface at Phillip Island, all the dry track time available was crucial for the Repsol Honda Team to understand the demands they face in 2024. A brief red flag due to local wildlife during the afternoon session did little to upset the #36’s rhythm as he was back on track after the brief pause. Longer runs again show potential for the 2020 World Champion, but his feeling on new tyres still remains as the key area of improvement for him and the team. A fastest lap of 1’28.773 left him 17th at the end of the day.

It was a frustrating day for Luca Marini who clearly had the potential to deliver a better final result. Ending Friday with a best time of 1’28.820 left the Italian down in 19th, half a tenth back on his teammate Mir. Yellow flags during Marini’s final laps of the track limited his potential and the #10 is determined to make another step forward on Saturday. As is often the case in Australia, times were incredibly close as a second split the top 19 riders on Friday. Marini is confident of making a step with not only the setting of his Honda RC213V but also his riding tomorrow.

Saturday is when everything counts in earnest for the Repsol Honda Team, Qualifying and the Sprint Race – the first one to be held at the Australian Grand Prix after its cancellation in 2023 – will be key indicators for Sunday’s main event. Forecasts will once again be frantically checked as the day progresses.